Culvert cleaner having rotary excavating conveyers



20, 1949 N. HQUTCOOPER 2,491,562

CULVERT CLEANER HAVING ROTARY EXCAVATING CONVEYERS Filed June 27, 1946 2 She'ets-Sheet 1 IN VENTOR.

NEIL HOUTGOOPER ATTU i? N EYS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec. 20, 1949 N. HOUTCOOPER CULVERT CLEANER HAVING ROTARY EXCAVATING CONVEYERS Filed June 27, 1946 Patented Dec. 20, 1949 UNITED STATES itfitTENT OFFICE CULVERT CLEANER HAVING ROTARY EXCAVATING CONVEYERS 1 Claim.

My present invention relates generally to improvements in rotary excavators of the power operated type employing a hand propelled twowheeled implement, and more specifically invention is embodied in a culvert cleaner utiliaing parallel longitudinally extending twin screw conveyers or augers for removing accumulations from the interiors of highway culverts of the corrugated metal type.

While my invention may be adapted for various purposes, such as conveying and loading gravel, sand, and similar materials, it is especially designed for removing collected dirt or soil from the interior of the culverts, and similar underground passages, that are otherwise inaccessible or difficult for clearance purposes.

Means are provided whereby the excavating conveyers may readily be adjusted for work in culverts or tubular drains of different diameters, and the compactly arranged excavators or rotary augers, together with the driving and operating parts of the implement may with convenience be manually controlled to insure substantial savings in time and in the expenditure of labor, together with emciency in operation of the implement.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of a portable implement of this type that may with facility be transported from one job to another location, and which, due to its minimum number of parts employed and its simplicity in construction and operation, may easily be controlled for effective loosening and for removal of the undesirable material from the culvert.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts as will hereinafter be more fully set forth and claimed. In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated one complete example of the physical embodiment of my invention, which performs its functions satisfactorily, and in which the parts are combined and arranged in accord with one mode I have devised for the practical application of the principles of my invention. While I have herein illustrated and described a power operated implement of the two-wheel and hand propelled type, it will be understood that my invention may be embodied in an attachment for an automotive tractor of suitable type. Other changes and alterations may be made in the exemplifying drawings and mechanical structures, within the scope of my appended claim without departing from the principles of my invention.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a two-wheel power operated, manually controlled, and hand propelled implement in which my invention is physically embodied.

Figure 2 is a View in rear elevation of the implement in Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is. a view in side elevation at the front of the implement showing the vertically adjustable twin-angers and runner, together with a longitudinal vertical section of the power plant and connections, as at line 33 of Fig. 2.

Figure 4 is a top plan view of the parts in Fig. 3 showing the lateral adjustment of the twin conveyers; and Figure 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 with the twinconveyers adjusted to work in a culvert of larger diameter.

Figure 6 is an enlarged transverse sectional view at line E6 of Fig. 3.

Figure 7 is a longitudinal sectional view at line l'i of Fig. 5 showing the tubular housings for the shafts of the twin augers; and

Figure 8 is a view showing an intermediate gear-couple in the driving mechanism for rotating the augers in opposite directions.

In carrying out my invention I preferably employ twin augers or rotary screw conveyers l and 2, which are arranged in a horizontal plane to project a suitable distance forward of the implement, and designed to be inserted or, pushed into the open end of a culvert for operations within the interior of the culvert or underground passage.

Each auger is fashioned with a front cutter, and the coils of the auger or rotary conveyer are constructed with rounded surfaces to prevent catching on rivets, ribs, or other fixed obstructions that may occur within the culvert. The twin augers rotate clockwise and counterclockwise, which action maintains them in straight lines as they advance to the work within the culvert, and for this purpose the rear ends of the shafts 3 and l of the augers are provided with an intermediate gear couple 5 and 6 (Fig. 8) forming part of the driving or power transmission mechanism of the motor of the implement.

The rotary shafts 3 and 4 are mounted in tubular housings l and 8, with suitable bearings 9, and the front end of each housing is equipped with an alined coupling sleeve it] having a bearing l l for the coupled inner end of the conveyer and the outer or front end of the shaft.

Within the coupling sleeve, which is threaded on the front end of a tubular housing, the inner end of an auger terminates in a straight shank 12 that fits into a socket l3 at the end of the shaft, and a transverse coupling bolt, or cotter pin I4 is passed through the socket joint for securely coupling the shaft and auger for rotary movement.

Directly at the rear of the augers a supporting head is arranged for the augers, shafts and housings, which head includes a runner or shoe [5 designed to glide over the bottom of the culvert; and the runner is provided with two rigid posts or threaded bolts l6, 16 that pass upwardly through alined and spaced holes in a horizontal rectangular headplate 11 disposed over the two tubular housings l and 8.

The housings, with their shafts and augers, are rigidly mounted beneath the head plate by means of sets of U-bolts l8 and nuts 19, the U-bolts passing through transversely extending slots 20 in the plate to permit lateral adjustment of the augers. As seen in Figs. 4 and 5 the supporting U-bolts may be adjusted laterally of the head plate to bring the angers close together for work in a small culvert, as in Fig. 4; or the angers may be spaced wider apart, as in Fig. 5 for use in a culvert or" larger diameter.

At their rear ends the tubular housings are rigidly mounted, as by U-bolts 2!, to a trans-- versely extending bar 22 of the main frame 23 of the implement, which is mounted upon the two wheels 24 in any suitable manner.

A conventional motor is indicated as 2-5, and. in Figs. 1 and 2 the driving mechanism of the motor is shown as a drive pulley 28, a belt 2'1, and a larger driven pulle 28; the manual control for the motor being shown as a hand lever 28 pivoted at 30, and provided with a friction roller 31 for rolling contact with the upper flight of the belt, in order to tighten the belt and drive the augers. Power from the driven shaft 32 of the driving mechanism is transmitted through sprocket wheel 33 on the shaft, sprocket chain 34, and a second sprocket wheel 35 mounted on one of the conveyer shafts as 4.

At their rear ends the shafts 3 and 4 are supported in suitable journal bearings 36 of the main frame of the implement, and the gear couple 5, 6, between the shafts serves to revolveor rotate them in opposite directions as previously described.

The two-wheel vehicle upon which the operat ing parts of the implement are supported is provided with a wide handle bar 31 for pushing, pulling, and guiding or steering the implement, and other accessories are illustrated, or may be utilized, that are not necessary for an under standing of my invention.

In operation, the power operated, and hand propelled and controlled implement is first positioned with the twin angers pointing through the open end of the culvert, and the implement is pushed forward to advance the augers into the accumulated dirt or soil. If the accumulation is excessively hard pack-ed, water may be applied thereto for softening, and to facilitate loosen-- ing of the material. The advancin and rotating augers cut into the material, loosen it, and si- 6 multaneously convey the loosened material to the rear, until a sufiicient quantity of the material has been excavated. Then the implement 4 is manually pulled or backed out of the culvert, either with, or without the angers in operation, to remove the loosened material through the open end of the culvert. After removal of the first load of material, the augers are re-entered through the open end of the culvert, for a second bite or operation in loosening and conveying the material to the rear, and the removal step in the process is repeated. These operations may be repeated as frequently as necessary, to clear the culvert.

If the culvert is too long for a complete cleansing from one end, after that end is cleared the implement may be transferred to the other end of the culvert for similar operations in order that the entire interior of the culvert or other passage may be cleared.

By means of the handle 5! and the readily accessible control lever 29 the implement may with convenience and without undue labor be correctly manipulated and guided, and the driving and transmission mechanism for the angers may readily be manually controlled. Due to the simplicity in construction and operation of the working parts the implement may with facility be serviced, and repairs or replacement of parts may be made when required.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

In culvert cleaner as described, the combination with a portable implement having driving means, a pair of tubular housings rigid with the implement, a pair of rotary shafts mounted in the housings, twin-conveyer-augers coupled at the front ends of the shafts, and power transmitting means between the driving means and said shafts, of a runner and a pair of spaced upright screw bolts rigid therewith, a transversely slotted .head plate mounted on said bolts and disposed over the housings, clamp-nuts for securing the plate in adjusted position on the bolts, U-bolts encircling the housings and passed through the slots in the plate, and clamp nuts on said U-bolts,

for the purpose described.

The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 44,360 Williams Sept. 20, 1864 1,371,875 Douros Mar. 15, 1921 1,392,739 Bebow Oct. 4, 1921 1,490 585 Brewczynski Apr. 15, 1924 1,673,457 Jensen June 12, 1928 1,833,957 G-roff Dec. 1, 1931 1,918,353 Utley July 18, 1933 2,051,700 Grace Aug. 18, 1936 2,062,850 Weaver et a1. Dec. 1, 1936 2,154,665 Crane Apr. 18, 1933 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 390,741 France Aug. 8, 1908 85,173 Switzerland Mar. 17, 1920 417,180 Germany Aug. 7, 1925 

